This late at night, the streets ought to be deserted, yet a solitary figure was walking toward them carrying a white paper lantern.

This scene was unquestionably strange.

But the moment Su Yi looked over, wisps of dim, distorted light appeared soundlessly on the sides of the street he and You Xue now stood on.

Then, the stars seemed to shift around them, and the scenery changed dramatically. They now found themselves in a world as dark and grim as death itself.

Su Yi’s expression remained just as calm as before, but You Xue furrowed her brow. A formation!

But Su Yi hadn’t said anything, and she wouldn’t attack without permission.

The eerie glow of the white paper lantern was the only source of light amidst the darkness.

The person carrying it appeared out of nowhere. He was an old man in gray with a waxy complexion. His hair was sparse, and his eye sockets were hollowed out. Instead of eyes, each socket was home to a broad bean-sized toad, one black, one white.

“Don’t panic, you two. My master has extended an invitation to both of you. I hope you can visit him outside the city, at Inverted Ridge,” said the old man in gray in a voice like the grinding of jagged...